Ciao bella! It's our second Maeve Binchy-cast of the season, with returning guest Sarah Maria Griffin. It’s the dawn of the Celtic Tiger in early nineties Ireland, and Nora O’Donoghue, or Signora, is returning home after over 20 years away. Having spent her youth in Sicily, in love with a married man, she has returned with no money, no friends and no prospects. She begins teaching italian at Mountainview school, where the beleaguered Aidan Dunne has just been passed over for the job of principal in favour of the womanising Tony O’Brien. Tony, meanwhile, is in love with Aidan’s adult daughter. The book follows every student in the evening class, subtly changing each of their destinies, and culminating with a trip to Italy at the end of the book. 

Sarah Maria Griffin is an award winning novelist and zine maker, follower her at @griffski

Caroline O'Donoghue is a novelist, her latest novel, Scenes of a Graphic Nature, is out now. All Our Hidden Gifts is available for pre-order

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.